Update: A complete review of the new version of this lens is here. Check out: A Traveler's Review of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 Lens
As some of you may know, I am a huge advocate for the 24-70mm range when it comes to a general all-purpose travel lens. In fact, I have always recommended people pick a 24-70mm lens (or 16-55mm for APS-C) if they are looking for the one lens to rule them all.
That was the case up until I took my new Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens for a spin the other day, and I realized just how much I had that lens mounted on my camera while I was out and about.
In fact, with this lens, I rarely ever use my 24-70mm lens anymore for travel photography because I often prefer the wider look that the 16mm gives for landscape and architecture - something I shoot quite often when I travel - compared to the 24mm.
Why is this lens my new favorite travel lens? Well, let's find out! Without further ado, here is a traveler's review of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens and why this lens could be the new all-purpose travel lens you are looking for.
- Quick Summary of Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
- What to Look For In A Travel Landscape & Architecture Lens?
- What I Love Most About the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
- The Drawbacks of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
- Sample Photos From the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
- The Verdict: Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens is the Most Versatile Travel Lens
- Further Reading for Resources
Quick Summary of Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
If you are short on time, here is a quick summary of the pros and cons of using the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens as your landscape & architecture lens, and a link to check the recent price of the lens below:
- Extremely sharp.
- Versatile range.
- Fast Aperture
- Expensive.
What to Look For In A Travel Landscape & Architecture Lens?
Wide Focal Lengths: One of the most important factors in picking up a travel lens for landscape and architecture is to see if the focal length of the lens is wide enough to capture all the details that the landscape and architecture have to offer.
For full-frame cameras, having around 16mm (or 11mm for APS-C) at its widest focal length is a good sign that the lens is wide enough to capture most types of landscape and architecture in their greatest detail without creating weird distortion around the edges of the photos, like fish-eye lenses.
Also, since you are going to use this lens for travel, having a versatile zoom range instead of a fixed focal length is a huge plus. The zoom range will allow you to be more flexible in spontaneous situations, which happen quite often when you travel.
All in all, when picking up a landscape/architecture travel lens, make sure that the focal length is wide enough for the type of subject you want to shoot when you travel. I would say the wider the focal length, the better.
Image Quality: Another important factor to consider is lens sharpness, especially when talking about a wide-angle lens that is prone to distortion and softness.
When you are testing out a landscape/architecture lens, try shooting sample shots at its widest focal length and fastest aperture, and zoom in to see how sharp your images are, especially around the edges of your photos.
With a high-quality lens, images produced are often sharp from edge to edge throughout its focal lengths and aperture, whereas cheaper lenses tend to fall apart at their most extreme range. So, when you are picking up a lens, be sure that you are okay with the image quality the lens produces.
Fast Aperture: When it comes to landscape photography, having a fast aperture might not be a big deal. However, for architecture photography, especially indoors, having a fast aperture will allow you to maintain all the details and keep your images sharp even in the poorest lighting conditions.
I found that having a maximum aperture of F2.8 is good enough for most situations. With the F2.8 aperture, the lens should be able to let in enough light to keep the ISO level low and the shutter speed fast enough to produce tack-sharp images without losing details to noise.
An F2.8 lens will also come in handy when you find yourself in a dimly lit European church and want to capture all the beautiful murals often found inside.
Combine that with a wide-angle focal length and a good low-light camera like the Sony a7III and Sony a7C, and you have yourself one hell of a low-light photography machine for landscape and architecture.
What I Love Most About the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
Versatile Range
The Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens has an extremely versatile zoom range and probably one of the greatest benefits of getting this lens over other prime lenses like the Sony 14mm F1.8 GM and Sony 20mm F1.8 G lenses.
With a focal length of 16mm, the lens is wide enough for me to shoot all kinds of architecture and landscape that I encounter when I travel.
I find it extremely useful for architecture photography, especially when I am in a tight corner and moving backward is not an option. Having a wide-angle focal length allows me to capture the place in its entirety without having to move backward.
I also love being able to punch into 24mm or even 35mm focal lengths when I want to be closer to my subject, for example, for street photography, without having to switch lenses. This is perfect for travel, as everything often happens spontaneously, and we often do not have the luxury of time to switch lenses.
Since the focal lengths of the lens overlap with another general-purpose lens that I have, the Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM Lens, I often find it much more convenient to use the overlapped focal lengths. As a result, I end up leaving my Sony 24-70mm lens in my bag for most of the shoots.
The only time I would switch to the Sony 24-70mm lens is when I want to shoot videos, as the 24-70mm range benefits more in this case. For those who aren't into videos, you will find everything you need in the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens.
Extremely Sharp
The Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens is one of the sharpest zoom lenses on the market. In fact, it is one of the highest-rated wide-angle zoom lenses of all time on DxOMark, scoring 34 points for sharpness and 42 overall, leaving all its competitors in the dust.
The lens produces tack-sharp images edge-to-edge at all focal lengths, even at the widest aperture of F2.8, where other lenses often fall apart. Even with higher-resolution cameras like the Sony a7RIV, which shoots 60+ megapixel photos, the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens still performs extremely well and is able to maintain sharpness in the highest definition, unlike other cheaper alternatives.
If you are looking for a travel lens for landscapes and architecture that is completely future-proof and can handle whatever higher resolution cameras you might be upgrading to in the future, then there is no better lens than the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens.
Fast Aperture
The Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens has a maximum aperture of F2.8, which makes it one hell of a versatile lens to shoot in low-light situations. You can use this lens to shoot in all kinds of places with bad lighting, like caves and dimly-lit churches, without having to worry about losing quality and sharpness.
Having a faster aperture also allows you to blur out the background with beautiful bokeh if you are close enough to the subject or if you are shooting at its tightest focal length of 35mm, making it great for subject separation while doing street photography.
The versatility that this lens provides with its fast aperture is hard to beat, and if you are looking for a landscape and architecture lens that will provide you with more opportunities to shoot when you travel, the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens is the one to get.
The Drawbacks of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
Expensive
The Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens is, by far, one of my favorite lenses that I bought, and I love it to death. However, one thing that might deter you is its hefty price tag.
The lens retails at almost 2,000 USD and even in the second-hand market where I got mine, the price still hovers around 1,600 USD, which is quite an investment and, to be honest, was quite hard for me to stomach.
That said, the second-hand price tag also shows just how high the quality of the lens actually is. Even in the used market, the price of the lens still retains more than 80% of its initial price tag, which makes the lens a great investment.
The Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens is one hell of an expensive lens, there is no denying it, but if you plan to use it to make money as I do or if you are looking for the very best travel lens to help improve your travel photography by leaps and bounds, the $2,000 price tag is definitely a great investment and I guarantee you will love the photos you get from it.
Sample Photos From the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens
A photo is worth a thousand words, so here are some of my favorite shots I took with the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens attached to my Sony a7C.
A sample photo shot using the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens of a person inside the Erawan Museum in Bangkok, Thailand shot at 16mm.
A sample photo shot using the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens of a Buddha statue inside a cave in Ratchaburi, Thailand shot at 16mm.
A sample photo shot using the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens of a dimly lit cave in Ratchaburi, Thailand shot at 16mm, F2.8.
A sample photo shot using the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens of a Buddha image in a cave in Thailand shot at 16mm.
A sample photo shot using the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens of a person standing at the Khao Ngu Rock Park in Ratchaburi, Thailand, shot at 16mm.
The Verdict: Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens is the Most Versatile Travel Lens
All in all, I found the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM Lens to be the best, most versatile lens for travel out of all my other 5 lenses I currently own. It has a versatile zoom range, a fast aperture, and can produce sharp images. Basically, it checks all the boxes of things I look for in a travel landscape/architecture lens.
The lens stays on my camera 80% of the time when I travel and even though it was quite expensive for me to buy, the versatility, quality, and opportunity I got from this lens made it well worth the investment for me.
If you are looking for a new travel lens to buy but are still reluctant because of the price tag of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 GM lens, I'd say, go for it. I mean, if you have come all the way this far and are currently reading this sentence, this lens is clearly for you.
Trust me, you won't find any other better wide-angle lenses out there for your Sony cameras. For those who are looking to buy the lens, there are often discounts happening over on Amazon, and I recommend you check out the latest price with the link below before you buy one:
Want to take your photography game to the next level? Here are some resources to help you upgrade your work and photography gear:
Further Reading for Resources
Looking for more articles to help you with your travel, may it be camera gear or clothing? Here is a collection of articles you might like:
- For a complete list of travel lenses to buy for Sony Full-Frame cameras, check out: The Best Travel Lenses For Sony Full-Frame Cameras.
- Looking for the very best travel full-frame camera to buy for your next trip? How about the Sony a7C, the smallest full-frame camera with an EVF in the world? Check out my review: A Traveler's Review: The Sony a7C Camera
- The king of travel lenses has arrived. The Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM II lens is hands down the best travel all-purpose zoom lens I have ever owned. Here's why: A Traveler's Review: Sony 24-70mm F2.8 GM II Lens.
- The new king of landscape/architecture lens is here. Here is A Traveler's Review of the Sony 16-35mm F2.8 Lens.
- Sony 70-200mm F2.8 GM II OSS lens is, hands down, the best telephoto lens to get for your Sony cameras but with an extremely high price tag. Here is a complete traveler's review of the lens: A Traveler's Review: Sony 70-200mm F2.8 GM II OSS Lens.
- Looking for a lightweight and affordable landscape/architecture travel lens that is also extremely capable? Here is A Traveler's Review of the Sigma 16-28mm F2.8 DG DN Lens.
- Looking for the best travel portrait lens to buy for your next trip? You can't beat the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN lens. Here is A Traveler's Review of the Sigma 85mm F1.4 DG DN Art Lens.
- Looking for a compact and lightweight travel telephoto lens for wildlife and landscapes? You are going to love this lens. Here is A Traveler's Review of the Tamron 70-300mm F4.5-6.3 lens.
- Wondering which Sony mirrorless camera is right for you? The Best Sony Travel Cameras to Buy in 2025.
- For more photography resources like this, visit my Photography page.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links.
8 Comments
What lens would you pair this with in a two kit setup?
My thoughts were an 85mm or a Tamron 70-180. Any thoughts?
Hey Darren,
For travel, I would go with either a 24-70/28-70 zoom lens or a 16-35 zoom lens and pair it with the Tamron 70-180.
I currently have both the Sony 24-70 F2.8 lens and the Sony 16-35 F2.8 lens and I found myself leaning more towards the 16-35 as I realize I take a lot of architectures and landscapes and the wide angle lens really give my pictures an interesting look to it. Zooming to 35 will also allow me to get a bit closer if I need to.
I found 85mm to be too limiting for most travel applications. It's great for portraits which I sometime take when taking photos of locals or traveling with other people but I often substitute it with the 24-70mm F2.8 lens when I don't want to keep switching lenses and the photos turn out fine. I still carry my 85mm though just in case as I still like the compress look and the bokeh the lens provides that my other lenses can't.
I hope this helps.
Hello,
A lot of traveller like me used 16-35mm and a 50mm instead of 85mm. 50 can be used during night and for portrait and with it you have the best of 35 and 85mm.
Hey Patrice, yup I also carry the 16-35 most of the time when I am traveling. It is such a versatile lens for travel especially in places like Europe where you are often visiting massive churches and what not. 50 is also a great focal length especially if you can afford the GM F1.2 lens. It is definitely a great alternative to the 85 if you want to capture more of the subject's surroundings. :)
I’m a profesional photographer that use Sony cameras. For architecture photography i’ve tried for a while with Tamron 17-28 and Sigma 16-28 but the quality is not enough. The main problem is vignetting that is not true that you can correct completely using software.
So, finally I think i’m going to spend 1500€ in a second hand 16-35 GM because is the only way to get the results I’m looking for.
Your review helps me a lot to take the decision.
Yup, I also went with the second hand one and for what you get, it is pretty incredible. I hope you are enjoying the lens! :)
I just picked up my Sony A7C. I have had it now for a month and love it. I picked up a 40mm f/2 Zeiss. The autofocus and clarity on the lens is incredible. That said, I appreciate your review as I don’t have a wide angle lens. I enjoyed your article and as we plan our next trip, this seems like the lens for churches and indoor photography.
Hey Carlos, that's awesome to hear that you like the Sony a7C. And yes, this lens is definitely great but if you are looking for a more affordable option, I can also recommend the Sigma 16-28mm F2.8. Doesn't give as much range but it's extremely light and compact, a perfect fit for Sony a7C. You can read my review of the Sigma lens here as well: Sigma 16-28mm F2.8 Review.